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National Theatre - 50th Anniversary Exhibitions

THENATIONAL Theatre has two exhibitions as part of its 50th Anniverary celebrations:

Chris Arthur: Scenes from National life – until November 10, 2013 (Lyttelton Exhibition Area).

Celebrating the working life of the National’s very first company, this exhibition includes brilliant unseen portraits, including Anthony Hopkins, Maggie Smith and Laurence Olivier.

Chris Arthur joined the lighting team of the National while making his first photographic experiments. Unique access allowed him to document the National Theatre’s shows and company life, the backstage world of the Old Vic and the street life of Waterloo.

National Theatre Lampoon – from September 19, 2013 to January 6, 2014 (Olivier Exhibition Area).

Uncover the story of the National Theatre from the early 1900s to today through rarely-seen cartoons and caricatures, satirical swipes from diarists, and records from the National’s own archive.

From the drawn-out struggle to establish a National Theatre to the love/hate relationship with Denys Lasdun’s building, and the strikes of the 1970s to the Romans in Britain court case and One Man, Two Guvnors, the National Theatre’s triumphs and tribulations have provided rich pickings for cartoonists, alongside the inventive brilliance of theatre posters and illustrations by artists such as Gerald Scarfe and The Times’s Bill Hewison.

Chris Arthur: Scenes from National life and National Theatre Lampoon are supported by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund.